I don’t believe that anything is fated to be. I think there are infinite ways our lives could go, and enormous changes happen as a result of very small and seemingly inconsequential actions.

Five adults, four of them over ninety, sat transfixed by this little caterpillar zooming overhead in circles.

We all put on life jackets and piled into the pontoon boat. I still wasn’t sure why I was getting on a boat. I couldn’t quite understand why a boat was necessary for a book club. I realized that I was feeling a little grumpy.

Sequins on a person my age are a sign that I do not take myself too seriously. But they also say that I don’t mind shining when the occasion is right. Sequins tell the audience that, yes, this is a special occasion. We are telling stories, and that is always special.

The habits that define me are both good and bad. I consume too much social media, and it shapes how I view the world. I eat a lot of vegetables and I become healthier. I started meditating, and now I feel unsettled if I don’t do it regularly. If I practiced my Spanish, I would become a Spanish speaker—but I don’t.

I had no idea how the story would end, and I was filled with this massive fear that when I got to the end, it would be terrible, or there would be no ending, or the book would never be finished.

I admired how Isabelle was ready for the next demanding day at kindergarten. At some point early on, Isabelle had grasped the idea that the future was something that could be planned, and she ran with it.

I hadn’t been swimming in a long time. Sometimes it feels like a nuisance to get wet. Sometimes I get self-conscious putting on a bathing suit. Usually, I fret that the water will be too cold. I chicken out and take a walk instead.